My Little Girl
by twilightscallingme
Summary: ...And, no matter what happens, no matter how far you go from here... no matter what the reason is, this house is always open for you to come home to. I’m happy for the two of you... Charlie's POV on Edward and Bella's engagement. oneshot.


Stephenie Meyer owns all of the rights.

"Dad, are you okay?"

I heard my daughters voice snap me out of my thoughts. She sounded concerned and worried. She was probably worried about how I was going to react to the news she had just given me: she was getting married. And, of course she wasn't marrying someone sensible like, oh, I don't know... Jacob Black. No, of course not! She was engaged to that boy that broke her heart and left he for worse than dead. Edward Cullen.

I looked up into Bella's eyes. They were searching mine, trying to find a strand of hope, acceptance, something. Her brown eyes... so innocent. And, Edward was standing there, too. He had a serious look on his face. I had no idea what could be going through his mind.

"Yeah, Bella. I'm fine. You just... shocked me, that's all," I told her, trying to keep my cool. I _had_ promised her, after all, that I wouldn't throw a fit when she eventually gave me news like this. I guess I knew that it would be coming soon. I just hadn't realized how soon it was going to be coming.

"I'm sorry," she murmured softly, her eyes downcast. My princess looked a bit defeated. That wasn't the way that I wanted her to feel. I hadn't meant her any harm: I loved my daughter. She was the most important thing in my world.

I reached out and touched Bella's shoulder in a loving way. I knew that I hadn't been the best father around, but I had tried my hardest. "I'm not upset with you, Bella. I'm happy for you two. It's just that you're so young..., I just don't know if it's enough," I explained my reaction.

She met my eyes with confusion. "What?"

"When I married your mother, Bella, we were young. We were too young. We thought that we knew what love was. We thought that we could last and make it work no matter what. But we were wrong. And..., Bella, there's a reason I never remarried." I didn't have to tell her that it was because I never got over her mom. She probably already knew that. Almost everything in this house was a reminder of Bella's mother, Renee. Even after all of these years, even though Renee had remarried to a younger man, I still loved Renee. I still wanted what was best for Renee. And, if leaving me and remarrying Phil was what was best for Renee, then damnit - I'd suck it up and that would be what was best for me, too.

Bella's eyes seemed to understand, and she touched my arm gently. "Dad, I know that you're worried that Edward will leave me again..." I heard her sharp intake of breath when she said the word 'leave'. I shot my eyes up darkly at Edward, and was pleased to see that his own eyes had tightened in guilt. I wish he could see what I saw in my head every time that I saw him walk through the door... the memories of Bella in those months when she had no happiness.

"Sir," Edward said calmly, breaking the silence that Bella's trailing voice had left. "I will never leave Bella again. That was the worst mistake of my life. And, even though we _are_ young, we want to spend as much of our lives as we can together. I want nothing more than to be the reason that Bella gets up in the morning. The reason that she smiles and radiates happiness like the sun. I want to be there to wipe her tears away and fight her fears and demons. I just want to love your daughter, sir."

I stared at him for a moment. That answer didn't sound rehearsed, it sounded heartfelt and passionate. It sounded like the way he acted when it came to Bella.

I nodded once in Edward's direction.

"When's the date?" I asked as I sucked in a deep breath. I had to accept this.

"August 14th," Bella said softly, her eyes wild with anxiety. Her brows knitted in despair as she added, "I'm sorry it's so soon, dad. But when Alice found out..."

I chuckled. "She always did seem to go the extra mile. That's fine, Bella. August is the perfect time for a wedding. I... I want the both of you to know that I'm happy for you," I said as sincerely as I could, looking from Bella to Edward and back to my daughter. I was happy... it just hadn't sunk in yet.

Bella threw her arms around me. I was shocked by this sudden outburst of emotion from my daughter, but I hugged her back.

"Thanks, daddy," she whispered in my ear before pulling away.

I surveyed my daughter for a quick second. It seemed like only yesterday she had fallen and scraped her knee and had come running towards me, crying for a band aid. Now, she had graduated from high school, was getting ready to move to _Alaska_ of all places, and was engaged. Somewhere between all of the bruises and band aids and tears, my daughter had grown into a remarkable young woman. And, somewhere between the homework, fights with friends, and coming to live with me, my daughter had met a young man who completed her in almost every way possible.

No matter how old Bella got, or where she lived, or who she loved, she would always be my little girl. Ever since she had been born, Bella had a pull on my heart that I would never be able to describe. It was a remarkable feeling, knowing that you had made such a tiny, perfect person. It was a remarkable journey to watch the child grow into who they were supposed to become.

No matter how much Edward loved Bella, he would never be good enough for her. No one would ever be good enough for my Bella. But, in the end, it didn't matter. I could see that he made her happy. I could see that she was meant to be with him, no matter if I wanted it to be so or not. I knew that regardless of what I said, they would get married. And since that was the case, I wanted to be there to walk my baby girl down the aisle. I wanted to be the one that gave her hand to the man standing at the alter.

Even though Edward was standing there, I felt the urge to tell Bella some of my thoughts on her getting married. The good thoughts – not the worries about what could happen if their love ran out or whatever. Just the good thoughts.

"Bella, you're always going to be my baby girl. And, no matter what happens, no matter how far you go from here... no matter what the reason is, this house is always open for you to come home to. I'm happy for the two of you; I can see the love that you have for each other, and I know that Edward is the one that you love. And, I know that Edward will take the best care of you that he can," I added as I shot Edward a knowing look.

Edward gave me a small smile. He murmured a soft thank you to me, and reached his hand out for Bella.

"We're gonna go to his house, dad. We wanted to call Renee and tell her the good news...," Bella explained as she pulled her gaze from me to her future husband.

I nodded. "She'll be a lot tougher than me," I warned. "But, she'll come 'round in the end."

"Thanks, daddy," Bella murmured one more time as she started to pull Edward towards the front door.

"Thank you, Charlie," I heard Edward say. There was no reason to doubt the sincerity in his voice. I knew that he would take good care of my girl. And, if he didn't... well, I always _did_ have a gun.

I smiled as I watched Bella and Edward walk out the door together, holding hands. This was only practice, of course, for the day when I actually did let go of my little girl.


End file.
